Organisational Mechanics
In The Wall Street Journal cyclist Floyd Landis talks about cheating in the Tour de France.
Most remarkable of the litany of allegations is that blood transfusions were performed in buses parked on remote alpine passes, but the list goes on and on.
It is amazing the lengths people will go to to win if the stakes are high.
Of course this sort of behaviour would never happen in the world of commerce and industry, unless you happen to work for Goldman Sachs.
James Lawther is a middle-aged, middle manager.
To reach this highly elevated position he has worked in numerous industries, from supermarket retailing to tax collecting. He has had several operational roles, including running the night shift in a frozen pea packing factory and carrying out operational research for a credit card company.
As you can see from his C.V. he has either a wealth of experience or is incapable of holding down a job. If the latter is true this post isn’t worth a minute of your attention.
Unfortunately, the only way to find out is to read it and decide for yourself.
Another interesting article James. It reminds me of a project I once worked on for a large financial institution. It was driven hard by the project sponsor, which is no bad thing. But she drove it VERY hard. Suspiciously hard in fact.
It got to the point where some real issues were being ignored. The deadline was all-important and she was determined to meet it. When one of her right hand men attempted to point out a certain issue, she threw her pen at him and accused him of not having a ‘can-do attitude’.
So what happened?
– We met the deadline and the product was launched amidst a marketing fanfare
– One week later (literally), the sponsor left for a (very high profile) job with another financial institution
– The known issues became reality and the customers complained like hell
– Her right hand man, along with numerous other scapegoats, got fired
– The new product died a slow death (actually not so slow) and was put out of its misery after less than a year
– The sponsor apparently made a series of high profile cock ups in her new high profile role, and left there under a cloud. Which I guess is a kind of happy ending (well at least the baddy got her comeuppance)
Even with the benefit of hindsight, I’m not entirely sure what anyone would have done differently. But you’re right – it is amazing the lengths people will go to to win if the stakes are high, isn’t it?
The worst bit Frazer is I have no doubt that she got a golden handshake and a dirty great big pay off.
Who says crime doesn’t pay?
Thanks for the comment